|
Learn Music Theory
Learning Theories for MusicYou've heard of music theory for dummies? Or... Maybe you've asked the question; "Can I learn music theory?" Well, I'm one of the people who needs it so let's go through this together.
A long, long time ago, when I was a kid, I wanted to take guitar lessons, but my mom made me take keyboard instruction instead. She argued that the best thing to do was to learn music theory.
After that, I could go anywhere with it. I would be allowed to learn basically any instrument I wanted within reason. I wasn't very excited about learning musical theory, and I certainly wasn't that excited about the keyboard.
I wanted to play guitar like my favorite rock stars did. Nonetheless, I knew that the only way to do that was to go by her rules. Once my mom made up her mind, she seldom went back.
Learning the Theories of Music Gave Me Structure
I never really liked the keyboard even when I was playing it, but once I started to learn music theory I get really excited about it. I had always had a pretty good intuitive ear for music, but learning theory brought it to another level.
The structures that I had observed for so many years suddenly had names. I could point to my favorite devices in music and identify them, understanding how they worked and why they sounded like they did. I even started to write my own songs, although I wasn't very good at it at first.
After about a year or so of
piano lessons, my mom relented and let me learn
some guitar. I decided to learn
musictheory for guitar as well. The interesting
thing about
Although guitar theory doesn't necessarily translate to keyboards, for example, keyboard theory does translate to guitars. A keyboard is basically a row of all the notes laid out in a logical order, so you really get to see how the theory of music works.
You can then take that knowledge to a more arbitrary instrument like the guitar, flute, clarinet, or anything else.
Now I Really Enjoy Learning Music Theory
Still, learning music theory on an instrument I really enjoyed for me to a whole other level. Suddenly, I was coming up with songs that I liked and making progress in my instrument. When I was learning the piano, it was always very slow going.
I would learn music theory and pick up some playing techniques, but I didn't show any particular skill or promise at it. With guitar, however, I was really starting to move. I soon had a good intuitive understanding of the way it worked, and could play many of my favorite songs.
The Debate about Music Theories and Why Learn It
The proponents of learning the theory regarded it as an essential part of knowing how to play music. You can learn by trial and error, they say, but you would do much better to benefit from the knowledge of other people. Not learning music theory when you play music is like refusing to learn arithmetic when you are studying math.
The other side, however, has just a strong of an argument. They claim that music theory worksheets are stifling. The point of music, they argue, is creativity. You should dive into it and experience it viscerally. Learning the theory of music too early on can stifle the imagination. Although it is all right to learn music theory chords later on, it is much less important than having some experience actually playing music.
I used to be on the latter site, but I have recently switched opinions. You see, I learned notes without music theory. I didn't even know colours theory, much less the more formal and rigorous stuff. To me, you see, playing music was almost a physical experience. I could feel the sounds and textures around me. I didn't really need someone telling me what the structures meant. I could tell what they meant with my entire soul.
As I have matured as a musician, however, I have seen the use and the need for music theory. I have even begun to use music theory work sheets, and I hope to understand it pretty thoroughly within the next couple years. You see, the most important thing about theory is that it gives you a good vocabulary to talk about music.
The Importance of Learning about Music Notes and Theory
I believe that you can learn to play anything without music theory. What you cannot do, however, is to talk to other people about it. If you don't know the names of the chords, the different scales and progressions, and the rhythmic patterns that define various forms of music, how can you tell other musicians what you want?
Learning about music is almost as important as learning language if you really want to collaborate with other people. Without it, it is very difficult to express yourself and ask people for what you want. Why make life difficult?
I have managed to learn music theory to such an advanced level that I could pretty much analyze any song I heard on the radio and understand what was going on in it. I wasn't an accomplished guitarist but being schooled in the basics of music theory gave me enough background to start playing my own songs. Now, what do you want to hear first?
|
 |
||||||||
|
|
||||||||||
Copyright © LargeMart.com All Rights Reserved world Wide How to learn music theory